Three developers wanting to build hotels have their eyes on Dunwoody’s Perimeter Center area. They have filed pre-application plans with the city this month.
Trammell Crow filed its pre-application with the city’s Community Development Department outlining a plan to build a 16-story office tower and a 10-story hotel at 1134 Hammond Drive, a small corner of the Perimeter Mall parking lot adjacent to the Dunwoody MARTA station at the intersection of Hammond Drive and Perimeter Center Parkway.
Branch Properties also filed a pre-application. It outlined plans to construct a 12-story hotel at 84 Perimeter Center East, where a vacant bank building now sits. Representatives from Branch Properties presented its plans to the Dunwoody Homeowners Association earlier this month.
And Prado Perimeter Center wants to build a 7-story hotel at 121 Perimeter Center West, where Tin Lizzy’s restaurant and an office building containing a SunTrust bank branch are located.
“The hotel market is booming metro-wide,” said Dunwoody Economic Development Director Michael Starling. “A bunch of hotel folks are looking and trying to find sites … and they think Dunwoody is a good location.”
Hotels in metro Atlanta and Dunwoody boast all-time high occupancy numbers, Starling said. He said hotels are uses that Dunwoody city officials like to see and said developers like Perimeter Center for its access to MARTA as well as the numerous restaurants and shops available.
Trammell Crow declined to comment on its plans to purchase about four acres of unused parking lot from General Growth Properties, owner of Perimeter Mall — the same site where Transwestern planned to construct its “Nexus” office tower.
Transwestern asked City Council to approve a 20-story office tower, but the council in November approved only 16 stories. Transwestern abandoned its project, leaving room for Trammell Crow to move in with its own project.
The proposal keeps some of Transwestern’s ideas in place. For example, a footbridge Transwestern proposed to connect the office tower to the MARTA station also is included in Trammell Crow’s pre-application.
The proposed 10-story hotel with 193 rooms would be built behind the proposed office tower next to the MARTA station. The 16-story office tower would include more than 347,000 square feet for offices and nearly 12,000 square feet for commercial development and/or restaurant space. The building also would include a three-level parking deck. Both buildings call for ground-floor retail.
The 84 Perimeter Center East property covers about two acres. Branch Properties wants to build a 12-story hotel with 200 rooms and a two-story parking deck. Also part of the proposed development is approximately 50,000 square feet of commercial space divided between two two-story buildings to be constructed adjacent to the hotel.
Pre-application plans for the proposed project at 121 Perimeter Center West include the current space for Tin Lizzy’s and Sun Trust as well as a 7-story, 157-room hotel; a 12,000-square-foot restaurant; a SunTrust drive-through ATM; and a 4.5-level parking deck with 350 spaces.
The 84 Perimeter Center East proposal is slated to go before the Planning Commission on July 11.
The other two proposals are being reviewed by city staff and could possibly go to the Planning Commission in August.